Taliban Thwart UAE Scholarships for Women Bound for Dubai

The Taliban authorities in Afghanistan have prevented around 100 women from traveling to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for university scholarships, according to Khalaf Ahmad Al Habtoor, the chairman of Al Habtoor Group. Al Habtoor had sponsored the female students' education and had arranged for a plane to fly them to the UAE, but the Taliban refused to allow them to board the flight. The Taliban have closed universities and high schools to female students in Afghanistan and require Afghan women traveling long distances and abroad to be accompanied by a male chaperone.